• Published 12th Jul 2015
  • 1,474 Views, 161 Comments

Stroll - re- Yamsmos



Octavia takes a leisurely walk around the world, just trying to get home.

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Dodging

Fame. Adoration. Popularity. That's what it all came down to in the end, wasn't it? That's what living day to day as a legendary bassist in the Canterlot Symphony really did for her, wasn't it? All those concerts, playing away at her string bass with her bow in the most perfect form she could muster, standing up straight and playing along to black dots on a script of paper and watching the waving of a pony's stick ahead of her, all she accomplished was but a simple gaining of acclaim. Thinking about this wasn't new to Octavia per say, but thinking about it for a long time sure was, on account of how short a time she considered a long one.

Fame. A long time ago, when she was a little filly who had just started playing the double bass, all she talked about was becoming famous for playing her instrument. She would discuss concerts, maestros, notes, different bow materials, the history of the bass itself, and even every last thing that went into creating another one. If she was somepony else, she would have thought that young Octavia Philharmonica would grow up to be an instrument builder, never having fully played one herself her entire life. A shiver went down her spine at the thought. What would she be if she hadn't taken up the double bass?

Octavia shook her head. Not a great thing to think about.

She couldn't really help herself though.

Fame. Adoration. Popularity. All of it received, and none of it wanted. She didn't want to be famous, she didn't want to be renowned. Every little filly and colt when they're young want to become famous when they're older, walking down Broadway with the likes of Sapphire Shores and Mareilyn Monroe at their sides, yukking it up in a yacht club with the Princesses themselves, and living an amazing life with loads of adventure and money.

The money was there.

The adventure was absent.

She needed neither, but found one.

And here she was, staring at a group of scared looking ponies who most definitely needed a little love and admiration at that moment in time. Her left ear flicking around idly, she remained silent and watched as W paced back and forth in front of the band, a sneer or a flashing of his claws shutting his victims up whenever they dared speak. Octavia wasn't one for such cruelties, but, claws were claws, armor was armor, and guns were guns, so Octavia was silent, and Octavia remained so. Her rump currently resting on a dry piece of dirt, the mare began hearing the usual interrogation questions she had heard countless times in old spy movies.

"I'm only going to ask you all once, and I expect an answer after it: who are you... and what do you want with us?"

Octavia frowned, knowing full well that another Griffon had already asked them the same questions an hour or so earlier. She had quit in quite a fit, getting the same results that W was receiving now. Not a single pony answering him, the Griffon bore his teeth and stopped pacing about like a nervous neighsayer, only to march up to the robed Pegasus in the front and center of the five member party. The Unicorn who had presented W with his crossbow sat down behind the currently-screwed pony, staring straight ahead with a pair of wide eyes that reminded Octavia of dinner plates.

She couldn't stop staring at him, a glare on her brow and her eyes narrowed to dangerous levels.

He had said her name.

And she wanted to know why.

A sudden noise startled her. Looking back to W, she found him waving a foreleg dismissively, eyes shut as he simply growled at them, "Bah, suit yourselves ponies." He placed the offending claw back onto the ground, turning to his right to face a rather grumpy-looking light brown Griffon, the same one who had both tied Octavia to a tree and pointed a Magicarm at her head as she squirmed. W lifted his chin up slightly, then cracked a smile, "All yours, V."

Octavia raised a brow, wondering just what this Griffon could do that the others couldn't. Watching, and waiting, as V stepped in front of the robed ponies, Octavia opened her mouth to practice her best O impression.

V, now standing in front of the center-middle-front Pegasus, slowly leaned forward and pressed her forehead against his. Octavia would have thought it a sweet display were it not for the circumstances, and especially not after what came next. Though the Griffon had obviously spat it to the ponies' leader in a slightly hushed tone, all had heard it, and that included the gray Earth Pony mare who now found herself stretching her neck back to a straining level.

"You like your wings, buddy?"

The Pegasus' lip wobbled, his brow instantly starting its work-out session as he stuttered, "I, I, well I would uh– that is to say–"

V's glare hardened.

The swallowing of nothing met everyone's ears.

"Is it because he's yellow?"

Octavia repeated the scared Pegasus' action, head swiveling about to find the source of the voice that had asked her what she considered a partially racist question, had she heard it right. Her ears had just been defiled with an admittedly simple but terrifying set of words, after all. Blinking rapidly, she finally turned to her left to find W looking where she had earlier, a brow to the sky as he sat on his haunches with his Magicarm slung across his back.

Octavia stammered, "Uh... what was that?"

Looking back at the mare, he pointed a claw to the Crossbow Unicorn and tilted his head to punctuate his words, "I asked if it was because his coat is yellow." He continued, ignoring the quick sigh of relief emanating from the mare. "You seem to be a little enthralled with him at the moment, and you don't look to be into that whole oh-he-wanted-to-kill-me-he's-so-hot kinda thing. To be fair, I don't like the color myself, actually. Find it's a bit too bright on the curtains."

Octavia cleared her throat mentally, straightening herself and lifting her chin. "Actually to be completely honest," she began, now looking back at the Unicorn, "it's his eye color that really kills his look for me."

"Oh yeah, definitely," W replied, staring at their topic as well, "always hated the color blue."

Octavia's eyes darted over to the corner of W's right one, noting its piercing cobalt color as he smiled and laughed to himself. Finishing his quick guffaw session, he sighed heavily and slowly panned over to look back at Octavia, who gave him an amused grin and a confused look, quite a rehearsed expression of hers. W rolled his eyes and turned back to face V, who continued on in her drilling of their prior attackers with as much vigor as a saber-tooth tiger loaded with top-of-the-line steroids.

W watched them carefully, almost judging the Griffon silently. Octavia, taking note of his narrow-eyed thousand-yard stare, scrunched up her nose and raised a hoof to prod him about the purpose of it, only to hear a pair of footsteps step through the dirt toward her and W. Looking up in tandem with him, they found the aforementioned V glaring at them, her dark green body armor gleaming in the sunlight poking through the treetops above them. A frown upon her dark bronze beak, she flitted her sights from the other member of her kind and then to the gray mare sitting next to him, who dipped her head and confusedly waved at her when she stared for too long.

Clearing her throat, she spoke gruffly, "Those ponies are ready to tell us who they are."

"Well good," W spoke up, a sigh escaping his smiling lips, "guess we can skip the branding process then–"

"But," V interrupted, raising a claw, "they won't say anything until they've talked it over..."

Octavia raised a brow. As did W, who asked, "Talk it over?"

V's head swiveled about on a slow gear, then stopped as her dark green eyes glared into a sea of purple.

She pointed a claw ahead of her.

"...with you."

Octavia's neck drew back as she touched a hoof to her chest, "With me? Why..." she stopped herself. Leaning toward her right, she stared down the empty space a couple yards away to find the yellow Unicorn smiling at her. A frown found refuge on her lips as the stallion began waving at her innocently. Rolling her neck around limply, she scowled at V and remained like so until the Griffon simply straightened her posture and adjusted the grip on the Magicarm in her right claw.

The silence met Octavia's ears like a moth to a flame.

Getting off the floor, she flattened her ears against the sides of her head and groaned.

"Fine."